She Held Back… Get Off Her!

Immediately I was released from the infirmary, I found myself in Mrs. Heather’s office. Judging by the way she sat behind her huge desk with her fingers tapping the fine wood, I already knew whatever she wanted to tell me wasn’t going to make my day any better.

“The Apex Trio gave their statement,” she said, watching me carefully.

I stood in front of her desk with my arms folded trying not to look nervous even though my heart was still beating faster than normal. I couldn’t stop thinking about the rogue, the blood, and the wet squelching sound it made when my wolf tore it apart.

“What did they say exactly?”

Mrs. Heather leaned back in her chair.

“They admitted they were hunting outside the academy grounds when they witnessed the attack.”

My eyebrows lifted only slightly because I knew it was a big ass lie. Hunting was the most pathetic lie they could think of and the fact the principal believed them only goes to show rules were made only for people like me.

She continued. “According to their statement, the three of them killed the rogue together.”

I stared at her trying hard not to show my shock. I wasn’t expecting that. When I left the infirmary, I was so sure they would have started a witch burning trial featuring me, Tiana, the weak Omega who secretly has a powerful ancient wolf living inside her.

I nodded slowly, even though something about the explanation bothered me, because I knew what I had done. It made no sense that they would cover up for me.

Mrs. Heather studied me for another moment before continuing. “You were extremely lucky the boys were there to begin with, Kiara.”

Lucky? I almost laughed out loud but controlled the impulse. I had been hunted through the forest, rammed into the ground and nearly torn apart. If anything they were lucky I didn’t notice them whike I was in my wolf form.

“You should understand something,” she said. “A rogue of that level cannot ordinarily be killed by an ordinary wolf. It would take at least two Alpha-level werewolves to have a realistic chance of defeating it.”

“I understand.”

“You need to be more careful in the future.”

I nodded again, then left before she could ask me anything else. The moment I reached my room, I knew my terrible day had decided not to end when I saw Victoria sitting on my bed with Julia acting as her favorite minion. Both of them eyed me hatefully as soon as I walked in.

Victoria glared as she said, “You have some nerve coming back here.”

“What is that supposed to mean? Where you expecting me to go somewhere else?”

Julia scoffed. “You almost got yourself killed.”

“I noticed.” I said, trying to walk past her.

Victoria jumped off the bed blocking my path with her body, her expression hardening. “You were supposed to retrieve an orb but instead you ended up attracting a rogue so close to the wall.”

I stared at her in pure disblief. “I’m sorry, maybe next time I’ll send it a formal invitation.”

The thought escaped my mind and I said it out loud before I could stop it, and for one horrifying second I almost smiled. Thankfully, my face remained blank. Victoria didn’t find it funny and her expression dropped instantly.

“You’re so pathetic that even rogues are attracted to you,” she snapped.

Julia laughed, then leaned closer to Victoria. “You won’t blame her. She’s probably a magnet for all the weird shit you could imagine.”

They both started talking and laughing as they found dumb ways to blame me for everything that had happened, and I stood quietly because arguing with Victoria had never worked in my favor.

Eventually, the conversation shifted to the Apex Trio. That was a topic they could talk about for hours without end. Victoria had a crush on Trevor, while Julia’s obsession with Cody and Axel seemed to change depending on which one happened to look at her that day.

That evening, Victoria forced me to attend a party with her obviously because she planned to make me the butt of her jokes when she and her friends ran out of things to talk about. I didn’t have a face paint or wore stupid clothes but there was no denying I was her personal jester.

The academy’s upper hall had been transformed to a blue ethereal wonderland thanks to glowing moon crystals while loud music vibrating through the walls. Students drank, danced, and fornicated in every room you thought would be empty.

I saw the Apex Trio almost immediately. I spent the entire evening avoiding them like how a professional fugitive avoided the men in blue in old crime movies.

One time I almost ran into them and had to go upstairs to hide for my mental health. I opened the first door I found and stepped inside, only to stop when I saw Julia pressed against Arthur, Victoria’s boyfriend, with his mouth against hers. They were kissing like people who had been kissing right from the time I started learning how to walk.

I froze praying they don’t notice me. I stared for a moment longer before backing out of the room quietly. I had seen nothing. Absolutely nothing. Victoria deserved whatever she had coming and I wasn’t going to fan the flames.

The next morning, I was dragged out of bed before sunrise. Victoria grabbed my pajamas and pulled so hard that the fabric tore, while Julia assisted with the assault.

“What the hell are you doing?” I demanded, confused.

Victoria slapped me hard before I could react. The strike was painful enough to make me realise she had lost her mind. Before I could recover from the slap, they dragged me into the hallway and threw me onto the floor, leaving me half naked as students began opening their doors to see what the noise was about.

Victoria pointed at me with trembling rage. “You think I don’t know what you did?”

I stared at her struggling to hold back my tears and rage. “What did I do?”

“You slept with Arthur, you fucking adopted slut!”

Julia slipped forward in an attempt to stop me from saying anything contradictory. “I caught them together last night.”

I looked at her realizing how stupid I had been to expect she would play by the rules. The girl who had been kissing Arthur was now accusing me of sleeping with him.

“I didn’t—”

Victoria stopped me from completing my sentence by going for my throat. Her fingers tightened immediately, cutting my air.

“You’re going to tell me the truth or I’ll kill you here and now.”

I couldn’t breathe. Her eyes were wild with rage as she squeezed harder. She looked like she had given into her inner madness and her form slowly became blurry.

My wolf screamed within me demanding blood. I felt her pushing against the cage I had built around her, demanding that I let her out. For one second, I considered letting her loose. Victoria didn’t deserve mercy.

If I released her then she would definitely rip through Victoria and Julia. Bonus kills for anyone dumb enough to try to stop her. It would be a massacre.

So I held her back. Even while my lungs burned and my vision darkened. Even while Victoria’s fingers dug into my throat, I refused to shift.

The darkness and calm felt like a welcoming escape the closer I got to it. Then—

“Get off her now or lose your arm.”